Ed Bianchi
|birthplace = USA |profession = Motion picture director and producer |yearsactive = 1981 to present |roles = Co-Executive Producer Episodic Director |seasons = 1 |first = "The Year of the Fin" |last = "Time and Tide" |credits = 8 |imdb_id = 0080601 }}Ed Bianchi, born , is an American motion picture director and producer. He is a Co-Executive Producer and episodic director for the first season. He has also worked on the series Deadwood, The Wire, Brotherhood, and The Killing. He helmed the films The Fan (1981), Off and Running (1991), and The Two Mr. Kissels (2008). Biography Career Bianchi began his motion picture career directing the film The Fan (1981). The film was about an actor being stalked by an obsessive fan. It received a lot of attention because it was released a few months after the murder of John Lennon, who was shot to death by Mark David Chapman, a former fan. However, it was a critical and commercial failure. Bianchi directed several music videos throughout the 1980s. He directed the dance sequences for the title sequence of each season of the situation comedy series The Cosby Show. He directed the film Off and Running (1991). The film was written by Magic City creator Mitch Glazer. The comedy starred singer Cyndi Lauper as the star of a mermaid themed lounge act who is embroiled in the murder of her lover, a gambler with ties to organized crime. It was not widely released but was popular in the home video market. Bianchi made his television debut with the NBC crime drama Homicide: Life on the Street. He directed the sixth season episode "Secrets" in Spring 1998. He returned to the show in Fall 1998 to helm the episode "Red, Red Wine" for the seventh and final season. The show was based on the non-fiction book by writer David Simon, who was also a writer and producer for the series later seasons. The show was run by Executive Producer Tom Fontana. Bianchi's work on the series lead to further episodic directing positions. He worked on Fontana's short lived news reporting drama series The Beat in 2000. Bianchi was hired as a director for the first season of the HBO crime drama The Wire in 2002. Like Homicide the show originated with David Simon and was filmed and set in Baltimore, Maryland. Bianchi helmed the sixth episode, also called "The Wire". He returned as a director for the second season in 2003 and directed the episodes "Ebb Tide" and "Collateral Damage". He also filmed sequences for the episode "Port of Call" as a Second Unit Director. Bianchi returned as a director for the third season in 2004 and helmed the episode "Time After Time". He directed the fifth season Law & Order: Special Victims Unit episode rituals in 2004. He directed the episode "Three Boys and a Gun" for Tom Fontana's legal drama series The Jury. Bianchi joined the crew of the HBO western drama Deadwood as a director for the first season in 2004. The series was created by David Milch and focused on a growing town in the American West. Bianchi directed the episodes "The Trial of Jack McCall" and "No Other Sons or Daughters". Bianchi was hired as a producer for the second season in 2005 and continued to regularly direct episodes. He directed the two part season premiere "A Lie Agreed Upon", "Amalgamation and Capital" and the season finale "Boy-the-Earth-Talks-To". Bianchi and the production staff were nominated for the Emmy Award for Outstanding Drama Series at the 57th Primetime Emmy Awards for their work on the second season. Bianchi left the production staff after the second season but returned as a director for the third and final season in 2006. He directed the episodes "Full Faith and Credit" and "Leviathan Smiles". Also in 2006 he directed episodes of Brotherhood, The Bedford Diaries, Heist, and Waterfront. The Bedford Diaries was a college drama from Executive Producer Tom Fontana and Bianchi helmed the third episode "Tell Me No Secrets". The show was canceled after one season. Bianchi directed the episodes "How Billy Got His Groove Back" and "Bury the Lead" for the similarly short-lived crime drama Heist. He directed an episode for the CBS crime drama Waterfront but the series never aired. Showtime's Brotherhood was the sole success from the crop of new series. The Rhode Island set crime drama was created by Blake Masters and Bianchi was a regular director for the first season. He helmed the episodes "Genesis 27:29", "Matthew 5:6", and "Matthew 22:10". Bianchi returned to Brotherhood for the second season in 2007. He directed the episodes "Dear Landlord 1:3-4" and "Things Have Changed 1:7-8". He also directed episodes for the new series Mad Men, John From Cincinnati, and Damages. Mad Men is an AMC period drama set at an advertising agency that takes place in the same era as Magic City. Bianchi directed the first season episode "Marriage of Figaro". For the FX crime drama Damages he directed the episode "I Hate These People". Both Mad Men and Damages were renewed but Bianchi did not return to Mad Men. John From Cincinnati was created by Milch and the HBO drama centered on a messianic figure appearing in a surfing community. Bianchi directed the episode "His Visit, Day Four". The show was canceled after completing its first season. In 2008 Bianchi helmed the television feature The Two Mr. Kissels for Lifetime. The crime drama focused on the similar but unrelated murders of two competitive brothers. He also rejoined Brotherhood for the third and final season and directed the episodes "Let Rome Into Tiber Melt" and "The Chimes at Midnight". He helmed seven episodes of the show across its three season run and was the series most prolific director. He directed the second season Damages episode "You Got Your Prom Date Pregnant", which aired in early 2009. He also directed the episode "Father's Fraternity" for the new cable drama Men of a Certain Age. In Spring 2009 he directed episodes for the mid-season replacement network dramas The Unusuals and Kings. For the police procedural The Unusuals he directed the episode The E.I.D.. For the fantasy drama Kings he helmed the episodes "Pilgrimage" and "The New King: Part One". Both shows were canceled after their sole seasons. In summer 2009 he directed the episode "Trust Me" for the new TNT medical drama Hawthorne. In the 2009 to 2010 television season he directed an episode for the fourth and final season of the superhero drama Heroes entitled "Chapter One 'Jump, Push, Fall'" and "I Saw This Pig and I Thought of You" for the medical drama Mercy. He also returned to the cable drama Men of a Certain Age as a regular director for the second season. He directed the episodes "The New Guy", "If I Could, I Surely Would", and "Cold Calls". In summer 2010 he returned to Hawthorne for the second season. He helmed the episodes "The Starting Line", "Road Narrows" and "No Exit". In the 2010 to 2011 television season he directed episodes of the new network procedural series Detroit 1-8-7 and Law & Order: Los Angeles and the new cable dramas Rubicon and Lights Out. For Detroit 1-8-7 he helmed the episode "Broken Engagement/Trashman". For Law & Order: Los Angeles he directed "Hondo Field". For AMC conspiracy drama Rubicon he directed the episode "Caught in the Suck". For FX boxing drama Lights Out he helmed the third episode "The Shot". All four shows were canceled. In Spring 2011 he joined the crew of new AMC crime drama The Killing as a regular director. He helmed the episodes "The Cage", "Vengeance", and "I'll Let You Know When I Get There". The show was developed by Veena Sud based on the Danish series Forbrydelsen. It was renewed for a second season. In the 2011 to 2012 season he directed an episode of Boardwalk Empire and joined the crew of Magic City as a Co-Executive Producer and regular director. For the HBO period crime drama Boardwalk Empire he helmed the second season episode "What Does the Bee Do?" He joined the crew of Magic City as a Co-Executive Producer for the series pilot, which was directed by Carl Franklin. Bianchi then directed the second and third episodes "Feeding Frenzy" and "Castles Made of Sand". He also helmed the sixth episode "The Harder They Fall" and the first season finale "Time and Tide". Bianchi returned to The Killing to direct the second season episodes "Ghosts of the Past" and "Bulldog" in Spring 2012. The show was canceled after completing the second season. Personal life Ed is married to Carla Bianchi who plays Peggy Reef in Magic City. She also appeared in Deadwood as Mary Stokes. The couple have three children. Credits Director Co-Executive Producer Filmography Television Director Film *''Luther Vandross: From Luther with Love'' - The Videos (2004) **music video: It's Over Now *''Off and Running'' (1991) *''The Fan'' (1981) External links * Ed Bianchi at IMDb * Ed Bianchi at Wikipedia Category:Directors Category:Producers